This invention relates to a radiator assembly equipped with a centrifugal fan for dissipating heats from engine coolant.
Axial flow fans are commonly used to improve the circulation of air through the radiators or heat exchangers of vehicles. Such axial flow fans are quite satisfactory where the radiator capacity is rather large as compared to the size of the engine. However, the increasing horsepower used in such vehicles today requires much greater cooling capacity and efficiency. Increasing the size of the radiator is not a practical solution to the problem because of the desire to maintain a reasonably small vehicle profile and because of lack of space available for such increased radiators.
The use of centrifugal fans proposed by U.S. Pat. No. 3,921,603 to Bentz et al is one approach to solving the problem by increasing air flow through radiators. In this patent, however, since the centrifugal fan is radially covered by radiators only three sides with bottom being not covered, part of air flow is apparently wasted.
On the other hand, the use of cylindrical or annular radiators has been increased recently especially for large vehicles having huge horsepower engines mounted thereof because such radiators have relatively short heights compared with their large heat dissipating areas.
One of such prior art devices is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,062,401 to Rudny et al. In this patent, however, since a propeller type fan is employed for producing air flow, air flow rate is generally not large enough to meet large heat dissipating area of the radiator for a larger vehicle. Besides, engine coolant is introduced into one of the two tanks and discharged from the other tank to the engine after heat in the coolant has been dissipated while passing through a plurality of tubes interconnecting the two tanks. Therefore, pipe arrangement from one of the tanks located remotely from the engine becomes extended and overall piping becomes complicated.